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Heat cycles

Heat cycles record when a female comes into heat, how long it lasts and what you saw. Over time they show how regular her cycle is, and for many species BreederPro estimates when her next heat and fertile window will fall. This helps you plan a mating before you are ready to act on it.

Heat cycles are available on every plan.

Where to find them

Heat cycles are on a female animal's page. Open the animal, go to the Reproduction tab, then choose Heat Cycles. The section appears for female animals whose species BreederPro tracks for reproduction, such as cats, dogs and horses.

Logging a heat

  1. Click Log Heat Cycle.
  2. Fill in the form:
    • Start Date (required)
    • End Date (optional): leave it empty while the heat is still going
    • Stage (dogs and other cyclic species only): Not specified, Proestrus, Estrus, Diestrus or Anestrus
    • Intensity: Not specified, Light, Moderate or Heavy
    • Symptoms: tick any that you saw. The list depends on the species. Cats and other induced breeders have their own list, including Calling / vocalizing, Lordosis posture and Rolling
    • Notes (optional)
  3. Save the cycle.

Edit a cycle to add the end date once the heat is over, or to correct anything you entered.

What the tab shows

  • In heat now: shown when the latest cycle has no end date and started within the last 21 days, with the day of the heat.
  • Next expected heat and Fertile window: shown for dogs and the other cyclic species in the table below. Cats and other induced breeders don't get a prediction.
  • Average cycle and Average duration: calculated from the cycles you have logged.
  • Median gap between consecutive heat starts: the typical time between heats you recorded. This is reported as observed, not predicted.
  • Heats this year: a count of the heats starting in the current year.

How the prediction works

BreederPro predicts the next heat from the average gap between your recorded heat start dates. With only one heat recorded, it uses the species default below instead. The fertile window starts a few days after the predicted start, using the species' usual proestrus and estrus lengths.

Species Default cycle length
Dog 180 days
Horse 21 days
Cattle 21 days
Goat 21 days
Sheep 17 days
Pig 21 days
Guinea pig 16 days
Hamster 4 days

Cats, rabbits and ferrets are induced breeders, which ovulate after mating, so BreederPro does not predict their next heat. Their heats are still recorded and counted.

The confidence shown with a prediction depends on how much history you have:

  • Low: one recorded heat, or only the species' typical cycle length
  • Medium: fewer than four gaps between heats
  • High: four or more gaps between heats

Treat predictions as a guide. Confirm with your vet before you plan a mating around one.